ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Hampton University men's basketball team's 2015-16 debut was a show of offensive prowess Saturday afternoon at the Winthrop Coliseum, one in which Winthrop prevailed 102-95.
 
It marked the first time Hampton had allowed 100 points in a game since 2006 (102-75 loss at Maryland).
 
Quinton Chievous paced the Pirates with a career performance, pouring in 29 points and grabbing 23 rebounds. Both were career highs for the Tennessee transfer who, dating back to last season, has four double-doubles in his last five games.
 
Chievous, who also had a team-high three assists, was 12-for-20 from the floor.
 
Lawrence Cooks also turned in the best performance of his collegiate career, dropping 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting. Brian Darden chipped in 13 points, hitting two of his five 3-pointers.
 
Cooks also tied his career high with six rebounds.
 
The Pirates (0-1) shot 44.3 percent (35-for-79) from the floor and hit 10 of their 27 3-pointers (37.0 percent). Hampton also had a decided advantage on the glass, out-rebounding Winthrop 52-33, and the Pirates held a 28-5 edge in second-chance points.
 
Hampton also scored 22 points off of 16 Winthrop turnovers.
 
Winthrop had built up a 20-9 lead in the opening moments of the first half, before the Pirates scored six unanswered to cut the gap to 20-15 after a 3-pointer from Reginald Johnson. But the Eagles held the lead throughout the opening 20 minutes, going up 31-17 at the 12:02 mark after a Keon Johnson jumper.
 
The Eagles maintained a double-digit lead for the rest of the half, leading by as many as 20 (52-32) with 5:07 left in the half. Winthrop scored 60 points in the first half, going 21-for-33 (63.6 percent) from the floor in that span.
 
Winthrop led 60-49 at the break.
 
The Pirates opened the second half with some momentum, embarking on a 13-3 run to cut the lead to 63-62 at the 12:09 mark after a fastbreak layup from Johnson. But the Eagles pulled away again, using a 15-6 run to grow a 78-68 lead after a Bjorn Broman free throw with 8:39 left.
 
Broman later gave Winthrop an 84-70 lead with 5:50 left to play with a layup.
 
Winthrop later led 87-71 after Jimmy Gavin hit a trey, but the Pirates clawed their way back and chipped away at the lead until it was as small as five. Kalin Fisher hit a free throw with 1:18 left to cut the Eagles' lead to 95-90 and cap off a 19-8 run.
 
But that was the closest the Pirates would get, as the Eagles kept the margin within two and three possessions as the final moments of the contest wound down.
 
Winthrop (1-0) shot 52.5 percent (31-for-59) from the floor and hit 48.1 percent (13-for-27) of its 3-pointers.
 
Gavin led five Winthrop players in double figures with 26 points. Xavier Cooks added 22 points.
 
The Pirates will be in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to take on American at 7:30 p.m. For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.